T[color=#000000]eachers in the United states are paid enough already, therefore they shouldn’t get an increase in pay. Getting an education degree is one of the easier degrees to get in college compared to the other challenging courses, “education—the degree held by around half of public school teachers—is among the least challenging fields of study. As measures of ability go, a degree in education cannot be equated with a degree in, say, computer science or engineering.” That being said. It is not right for a teacher to make more money then someone who worked harder in college. On top of that, consider all the benefits that they get besides a decent salary. They get pensions, health care and tenure. Increasing teachers salaries will also decrease the teacher quality. It will cause in increase in applicants and a decrease in job openings. It would mean that the people that actually wanted to teach will have a less chance of becoming one because they will be discouraged. I found all of my evidence in this article right here:type in google why teachers shouldn't get paid more and it should be the first link

I agree with this. I believe that teachers get paid enough for what they do. It is not very difficult to teach and I believe that some could do it without a degree. For example, some of the TAs at UNM do a fantastic job teaching and they are going for a degree that does not at all compare to a teaching degree. Also, teachers have amazing hours and never have to worry about working anything but their specific hours. Teaching can be a very easy career based on how much you put into it.

I think all public school or government funded schools all different. Some are well funded and are about to build a new school for themselves. There are also school in bad neighborhoods with troubled kids. Would say teachers from both school have it easy. Teachers spend most of their years prepping for lesson plans and grading. Are all teachers good teachers? In my opinion, not really. I also think teachers who work with troubled kids in a troubled community need to get an little extra pay. In some states an MVD worker makes as much as a public school teacher. I don't think it's fair if the MVD work that likes to takes their time with paper works gets the same pay as a teacher that gets disrespected by students daily.

dviramontes wrote:T[color=#000000]eachers in the United states are paid enough already, therefore they shouldn’t get an increase in pay. Getting an education degree is one of the easier degrees to get in college compared to the other challenging courses, “education—the degree held by around half of public school teachers—is among the least challenging fields of study. As measures of ability go, a degree in education cannot be equated with a degree in, say, computer science or engineering.” That being said. It is not right for a teacher to make more money then someone who worked harder in college. On top of that, consider all the benefits that they get besides a decent salary. They get pensions, health care and tenure. Increasing teachers salaries will also decrease the teacher quality. It will cause in increase in applicants and a decrease in job openings. It would mean that the people that actually wanted to teach will have a less chance of becoming one because they will be discouraged. I found all of my evidence in this article right here:type in google why teachers shouldn't get paid more and it should be the first link

I'd like to provide some food for thought to you. Consider your ability to actually be here in college at this moment and the amount of time it took to prepare you for this. Consider how many hours and days each teacher poured over countless assignments knowing they could potentially fail a student and hold them back a year. Furthermore, consider what teachers actually do in all grade levels to devote themselves to knowledge and education, to ensure that child does not fail. Unfortunately teachers are actually one of the more abused groups in the work industry and the misconception that they make enough money is prolific and wrong.

Our country is founded on the basis for a need for education, and it is wrong that those who create the next generation of intellects are disregarded. The average teacher salary across the US is $44,758 (Referencing payscale.com/federal Labor stats.) This is the pay for all teachers K-12, special needs teachers reach $48,900. This is a number which enables a family of two adults and one child to live comfortably and set aside $2000 a year aside in expenses, once all bills are factored in. However, enter taxes and cuts from this salary amount and your gross becomes closer to $40,000 a year, leaving you a bit shorter on funds. By year 20, when your ready to retire and if you receive a Master's degree, your amount raises to $50,000, with a gross of roughly $44,000.

Translation, this profession is looked at with only mild interest and has not had an adequate evaluation for it's importance to influencing the generations to come. Every individual here is effected by what a teacher taught them and will continue to be such. Individuals of this quality deserve better treatment.

Unless you have been in the position of a public school teacher I would say it is very hard for you to say that it is an easy job. Yes teachers do have a lot more time off than other full time jobs but they also do have a lot of work that they take home with them. Grading papers for example is not something you can get done in 30 minutes. In the state of NM some teachers are teaching up to 200 students and only have one prep class to prepare for seven other. So in other words that means if a teacher is going to take time grading and actually put effort into lesson planning its going to take a lot of at home work as well. Not to mention within the last few years teachers have been graded not only on their performance but also on the students performance. Many students have been fighting all the testing and they don't realize that it also effects the teacher, not just them. I personally think teachers should get paid a bit more.

I agree with the last two comments. Each teacher that you have ever come across has aided you with the tools to allow you to read, write, perform basic math skills, and maybe even teach you one or two things about the world and society. Whether they were a teacher from kindergarten or TAs now, they have provided you with an education and both make roughly the same amount of money. However, when discussing public school teachers, you must understand that the teaching environment is changing rapidly now compared to when we were children. Teachers are expected to teach social skills, morality, safety, technology and curriculum to incredibly large class sizes where each student has an individual learning style and background. Meanwhile, their performance is evaluated by standardized tests given to kids, which takes away hours that could be spent teaching. So, based on all of this do I think that teachers should be better compensated? Yes, however, that requires increasing taxes, which can become an even more emotional debate for some

I also believe that teachers should be paid more. They spend hours at the school they work at on weekdays and usually weekends as well. They give different lectures during every class, which means that they must spend a lot of time planning on what they will be going over. They also put a lot of thought into the assignments they will give their students in order for them to understand the material better. Not only that, but teachers spend hours/days grading these assignments. One may think that it is the teacher's fault for giving so much work, but the whole point is for the student to gain a better knowledge. Every teacher's goal is to make a student's education more advanced. Like Adam said, teachers know that after all of the time they put into the work the class goes over throughout the entire year, a student may end up having to repeat the course. If it wasn't for teachers, none of us would be in the place we are at today. Therefore, it is appropriate for them to be better compensated.

I agree with the last few comments. Teachers should be better compensated for all the hard work that they do that is going unnoticed. Many teachers go out of their way to help their students and exceed what is expected of them. I have had teachers that have taken money from their own pockets to provide supplies or materials that their students needed. This is not expected of them and that money is definitely not given back to them by the school. Teachers do this because they take their career seriously and they genuinely care for their students. They work off the clock all the time when they are grading papers or preparing lessons, but this extra work is also not included in their salary. All these factors contribute to why I disagree with your point. Teachers should get paid more because what they are getting is not enough for all the work that they put in.

I do agree that teachers do get many benefits that others don't such as summer and winter breaks. However, I have to agree with the last few comments as well. Teachers go through a lot more then what we see in class. Many teachers remain at school after hours to tutor, attend faculty meetings or grade papers. They are not given a bonus in pay or reward, but do it for the success of their students. Yes, they may not have to stay in college as long as other professions require, but they do stress more when trying make a difference in a student's life. Also, state tests are given to students and if results are bad then that reflects terrible on the teacher and school. I still stick to my opinion that teachers go unrecognized for the work done and shouldn't be looked down on due to their standing in society.

I agree with the last few strings of comments, teachers deserve more pay. A teacher is someone that has the opportunity to touch lives and makes the future generations. Not to say that all teachers take advantage of this opportunity or perform to the best of their abilities. However, there are a lot of teachers that do and offset those who don't. Teaching is an extremely stressful job, imagine trying to get a cat to play the piano it would be difficult because of lack of understanding and resistance, but somehow teachers manage to get children (the cats) to perform tasks and skills that they will take with them their whole lives. In my opinion teachers should be put in a type of evaluation system to find out if they have what it takes but also really want to teach. You stated that people would become discouraged if wages were raised, I disagree. I believe that if the wages were increased there would be a higher demand and that would provide teachers and fill the schools which is better for students. Teachers would also be happier and feel more appreciated for what they do.

"It is not right for a teacher to make more money then someone who worked harder in college."

Although I agree with your stance on the topic, the area on which some of these accusations are made is inaccurate. The amount of work teachers do for students in the classroom, preparing information and lessons, and the overall care of their environment take incredible amounts of effort and work. The idea that their lessons or degrees were "easier" have nothing to do with there current positions within the classroom. Also, the idea of harder classes for engineers is inaccurate - the information was just different but the level could be the same. (An educations class could be the same intensity as any engineering class - you have no way of determining how hard some worked in the classroom or subject, therefore I do not agree with your statement.) I do, however, agree that with benefits included, decent salaries and extensive time off, the salary is accurate for the position. Thank you

I think that you are right in some points. However it depends in my opinion very much on the place the teacher works at, as already stated in previous comments. The work teachers have to get done is not less and it needs a lot of preparation time, also because even teachers can't remember everything. They have to refresh their knowledge as well. Also the social environment is getting difficultier, as I heard that many of the younger generations are getting more difficult to handle with, due to for example their early access to social networks, where they not at all learn a friendly handling with each other. This can get a very stressful job for teachers and they deserve their payment.

The fact that getting a degree in education is easy doesn't necessarily mean the jobs are easy. My senior year in high school i took a class Called Youth Tutoring Youth (YTY) where i got the chance to assist in a classroom as an assistant teacher. Seeing the work of a teacher day in and day out is exhausting. They don't just teach, they put up with kids from all kinds of backgrounds of problems. The disrespect these teachers put up with and the attitudes they deal with takes a special kind of person. Many other people would lose their cool and explode. I frequently asked teachers why they do it, why they put up with it and always got the response that they loved what they did. Do i think that teachers deserve the pay of a surgeon, lawyer, or engineer, of course not. But the time and dedication put into their jobs every single day is worth more then what they get.

I agree with the above comments, stating that teachers don't necessarily have an easy job.

I currently am going for a type of education degree and its not a simple as you think. As a teacher you have to open your mind and make sure that students are following along. A teacher has to be able to get a big subject then simplify it to make it easy for students to understand. Teachers also have to be able to teach students that may have disabilities or other factors that may affect their learning habits. You also have to consider different factors about the environment of the school, some administrators of schools can make it more difficult for schools.

Teachers should be paid more because without them, there would be no one to pass on teachings, cultures, and other important topics that help our prosperity as the human race. They help students (including yourself) go into college and find successful careers for themselves. Teachers also have a certain connection with students. They can inspire students to choose a certain field and give them the support they need.